The International Federation's Disaster
Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) is a source of un-earmarked money created
by the Federation in 1985 to ensure that immediate financial support is
available for Red Cross Red Crescent response to emergencies.

COLOMBIA: A red alert was declared
in the region of Timana, located in the south side of the Huila Department,
due to a landslide caused by a geological failure. 450 families have been
evacuated so far.

DENGUE OUTBREAK

ARGENTINA: The Ministry of Health
reported last week 12,875 cases of dengue and 355 suspected cases.

CHAITEN, Chile, Feb 26 (Reuters)
- Hostel owner Rita Gutierrez Vargas would rather run the risk of being
incinerated by another volcanic eruption than leave the Chilean town where
she has spent her entire life.

Her mud-caked, ash-smothered town of
Chaiten deep in Chile's southern Patagonia region was devastated after
a spectacular eruption last year, and is still at risk as the nearby volcano
of the same name continues to belch a vast column of ash and gas.

There is no running water, no electricity,
most of Chaiten is a ghost town and there are …

SANTIAGO, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Chile
says it has found a new home for the 7,000 residents of Chaiten, the town
in the verdant South that turned white with ash last year after a volcano
dormant for thousands of years exploded back to life.

The Chaiten volcano, which erupted spectacularly
in 2008, spewed a vast cloud of ash again last week, sending gas and molten
rock into skies above the town six miles (10 km) from its crater, forcing
the evacuation of many residents too stubborn to leave a year ago.